Telekom Austria is reaching out to enterprise customers in central and Eastern Europe (CEE) with a new initiative aimed at spurring the adoption of M2M services.

Called ‘Unlock M2M’, the program is intended to facilitate the take-up of M2M technology by making it more accessible and affordable.

Claiming to have struck 80 deals worth a total of €15 million during its first year in the M2M market, the Austrian incumbent reckons that M2M suppliers – and especially small solution specialists – face considerable complexity and substantial costs when serving enterprise customers in various industries, including transportation and logistics, industrial automation, retail and energy.

It proposes to carry out joint marketing and sales activities with M2M partners, taking advantage of its local sales forces across CEE to “unlock” the potential of M2M in the region.

“The many projects carried out by Telekom Austria [Vienna, Austria] over the last 12 months have resulted in a strong and diverse network of solution partners from different industries,” said Bernd Liebscher, the managing director of Telekom Austria Group M2M. “Combining the long-lasting experience of our mother company Telekom Austria Group, financial stability and strong market access with the innovative power and core competence of these partners, we will be able meet our customers’ needs with the best available solutions on the market.”

“‘Unlock M2M’” provides a sales-oriented, commercial and technical framework for existing and new partners to successfully generate business in the CEE region,” added Phat Huynh, who is responsible for marketing and sales at Telekom Austria Group M2M. “Strategic partner programs are not new to the M2M industry. However, ‘Unlock M2M’ differs in one distinct point: it is hands-on.”

According to studies carried out by Machina Research, the CEE market for M2M solutions will grow from revenues of €10 billion in 2011 to more than €70 billion in 2020, with solutions and managed services responsible for the largest share of sales.